COUNTING THE COST.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 249, 29 July 1940, Page 4

COUNTING THE COST.

France, that logical nation, is once again our ally, ancl more than ever it behoves us, and also the French, to take advantage of the wisdom of her sages, says “Lucio,” writing in the “Manchester Guardian,” Many of the sayings of La Rochefoucauld, impetuous soldier, obvious humanist and supposed cynic, are well known in Britain, so well known that some of them have almost passed into the stage of proverbs. One of them is not so well known as it deserves to be, though it should be written in letters of fire oti the minds of all those who have to do with affairs of State and especially on the minds of statesmen whose country is at war. It runs: “La souveraine habilete consiste a bien connaitre le prix des clioses,” or, as it might he translated, “The supreme competence lies in well knowing the price of things.” A hard saying, for it is notorious that in the conduct of life very few know in advance the full price of tilings.